DIRECTORATE-GENERAL
ENVIRONMENT
Directorate D - Water, Chemicals & Cohesion
ENV.D.2 - Water and Marine /
Brussels, 04/12/06
PG/FW/GV/
Marine Strategy Stakeholder Meeting (Brussels, 29 November 2006)
– Summary Conclusions
The meeting was attended by approx. 30 stakeholder representatives and 6representatives from Commission services.
The documents and presentations related to the agenda are stored publicly on the marine strategy CIRCA site at:
EU Marine Strategy – developments since the last Stakeholder Meeting in June 2006 and next steps
The Commission informed participants about progress made with regard to discussions on the Marine Strategy in the European Parliament and in the EU Council of Ministers, highlighting some of the aspects of the Marine Strategy Directive which had received attention in both legislative institutions. These include: good environmental status, role of regional organisations, links with the Water Framework Directive, nature protection through marine protected areas. The Finnish Presidency of the Council had put the Marine Strategy Directive on the agenda of the 18December2006 Environment Council meeting with a view to reaching political agreement in this stage (first reading) of the co-decision procedure.
The Commission provided summary information on developments preparing for the environmental monitoring and assessment work that would form the first steps of the implementation of the Marine Strategy Directive. It updated the stakeholders on the work ongoing under the European Marine Monitoring and Assessment (EMMA) group with respect to the conclusions of two EEA-led EMMA workshops on operational oceanography (October 2006) and on biological elements and ecological processes (November 2006). The results of three workshops (the third one, on chemical loads and burdens, was still to be held in April 2007) would be reported to the next EMMA plenary on 30-31 May 2007. It was hoped that this work would result in better tools allowing Member States to implement the Directive and in better common use of marine environmental data through more common indicators.
Good environmental status
Stakeholders were invited to present their views on this essential concept taking into account the evolution of inter-institutional discussions. Saskia Richartz (Greenpeace) presented Greenpeace's and a coalition of Brussels-based marine environmental NGOs views on 'good environmental status'. She argued that the definition of the 'ecosystem approach to the management of human activities', as elaborated by ICES during the preparatory phase of the Marine Strategy, provided the basis for the legitimacy of a range of different types of criteria and allowed focusing on pressure-based criteria for a number of activities. The vastness of seas and oceans, the lack of ecosystem understanding and the principles of good ocean governance pleaded in favour of criteria directly related to the management of human activities. A coalition of NGOs had worked out a comprehensive set of these criteria. In the discussion, views were exchanged on the concrete application of such criteria in relation to activities such as fisheries or extraction industries. It was indicated that, in an ecosystem-based approach, the best possible understanding how the ecosystem functioning reacts to the multiple pressures forms the basis of integrated management.
EU Maritime Policy – status of progress and next steps
The EU Marine Strategy is to be seen within the broader context of the development of a new EU Maritime Policy. The Commission adopted a Green Paper on Maritime Policy in June 2006 ( outlining priorities for the development of a future EU Maritime Policy. The Green Paper underscores that the EU Marine Strategy will deliver the environmental pillar of the future Maritime Policy.
The adoption of the Green Paper opened a period of stakeholder consultations which will run until 30 June 2007 further to which the Commission will consider policy proposals on a wide range of maritime issues.
The Commission (Maritime Policy Task Force)informed participants about the preliminary results of the stakeholder consultations. Many stakeholders so far had welcomed the ambitions for a fully integrated approach, the role of innovation and creativity as a basis for further economic and employment opportunities, the focus on better regulation and the avoidance of contradictions between policy areas and sustainability. It had so far proven difficult to mobilise ideas on how e.g. tourism could be addressed as a 'maritime sector'. The Commision representative stressed that crisp and precise contributions were likely to be most successful in making a mark on the follow-up process. The Commission was also considering organising some specific workshop-type events on environment, employment, and data/monitoring. Stakeholders suggested that these events should not be held on the basis of 'single interest' agendas but rather mobilise broad fields of interested parties. Tourism was also flagged as a potential candidate for such an event.
Norway's Marine Strategy for the Barents Sea and sea areas of the Lofoten islands – synergies with the EU Marine Strategy and lessons learned
Ms Ingrid Berthinussen, Advisor in the Department for Pollution Control of the Norwegian Environment Ministry, presentedNorway's Integrated Management Plan for the Barents Sea and Lofoten area.This plan was the result of a 2002 governmental decision to build marine management decisions on an ecosystem-based approach. It had been elaborated in consultation with Norwegian stakeholders. The plan had the status of a government agreement, and was now influential in sectoral decision making for the area concerned. Ms Berthinussen showed how the process had worked and on which stepwise deliverables it had been built. The Norwegian authorities were in discussion with the Russian authorities about undertaking a similar development for the entire Barents Sea area for the benefit of both riparian countries. Similarly, they were considering similar plans for the Norwegian Sea and the North Sea.
In the discussion, it was highlighted that the process had largely built on existing information and data, and that, even though there had been no legislation to compel anyone to cooperate, cooperation had been strong and the governmental and non-governmental actors had been very satisfied with the outcome of the process.
Establishing and Environmental Strategyfor the Mediterranean
Mr Andrew Murphy, Administrator in the Enlargement and Neighbouring Countries Unit of DG ENV,presented the key points of the recent Commission Communication establishing an environmental strategy for the Mediterranean (COM(2006)475). His overview clarified the relation between different developments around the environmental protection of the Mediterranean Sea, focusing on the new cooperation mechanisms under the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) and the linkages with the European Marine Strategy.
The Commission indicated its intention to reconvene a stakeholder meeting to discuss further progress under the Marine Strategy around April 2007.
The meeting was closed at 4.55 pm.
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